SRI SRI JOGULAMBA Jogulamba (also called as Yogulamba / Yogamba) is one of the eighteen Shakti peethas. Oordhva danta pankti (Upper jaw with tooth) of devi fell here. She is the Shakti of Bala brahmeswara swamy.

INDIA > ANDHRA PRADESH > NEAR KURNOOL > ALAMPUR [Jogulamba in 18 Shakti peethas map] While going to Kurnool from Hyderabad we have to turn left at Alampur cross-road (12k.m before reaching Kurnool). Alampur is at 12k.m distance from that spot. It is a small village and the Jogulamba temple is located in the South-East corner of the village very beside Tungabhadra river.

Old temple of Jogulamba was destroyed by Bahamani sultans in the 14th century. The idols of Jogulamba and her two shaktis Chandi, Mundi were protected from them and placed in Bala brahmeswara swammy temple until 2005. Now, a new temple was constructed in the same place and the goddess was shifted in to it. New temple of Jogulamba is very much beautiful to see with a nice granite flooring. It is surrounded by a water pool. Villagers of Alampur tell an interesting reason for it: "Jogulamba is an Ugra rupa (highly energetic and hard to worship) and this water pool makes the atmosphere cool so that we can easily worship her".

Idol of Jogulamba is typical. She is in sitting position. She has huge amount of hair with lizard, scorpion, bat and a human scull in it. Idols of Saptamatrikas, Vighneswara and Veenapani veerabhadra are also present in the temple. Original Chandi Mundi idols were left in Bala brahmeswara swammy temple and new idols are made and placed in Jogulamba temple.

Alampur is called as "City of Temples". All of them are very old and famous for their sculpture. They are under control of Indian Archeological department. The entire temple campus was built on the bank of river Tungabhadra. Out of them, temples of Nava brahmas and the temple of Kanchi kamakshi are most important.ficance of Alampur==

Navabrahma Temples

Alampur Navabrahma Temples[3][4] are located at Alampur in Andhra Pradesh. There are a total of nine temples in Alampur. All of them are dedicated to Shiva. These temples date back to the 7th century A.D and were built by the Badami Chalukyas rulers who were great patrons of art and architecture. Even after a time span of several hundred years, these grand temples still stand firm reflecting the rich architectural heritage of the country.

The temples are emblematic of the Northern and Western Indian styles of architecture. They do not reflect the Dravidian style of architecture as is generally common with the temples in this region. The brilliance of the artists who carved the sculptures of these temples is indeed commendable.

The Navabrahma temples are present on the left bank of the Tungabhadra river, enclosed in a courtyard.

Swarga Brahma temple [5] was built during 681-696 AD by Lokaditya Ela Arasa in honour of the queen of Vinayaditya, it is mentioned in an inscription found above the Dwarapalaka image. It is the finest example of Badami Chalukya Architecture and sculpture. This temple is the most elaborately ornamented temple. Temple with an imposing tower (Rekhanagara vimana) is the finest compared to other temples at Alampur.

Padma Brahma

Padma Brahma temple having polished stone sculpture of Shivalinga .

Bala Brahma

AS per the inscriptions, Bala Brahma temple dates back to 702 CE. It is the main shrine of worship, Shivaratri is celebrated.

Vishwa Brahma

Vishwa Brahma temple having sculptural scenes from the epics. It is one of the most artistic temple.

Garuda Brahma

Kumara Brahma

Arka Brahma

Vira Brahma

There are other temples like Suryanarayana temple dating back to 9th century. And Narasimha temple with inscriptions belongs to Sri Krishna Devaraya (Vijayanagar Empire). You are sure to be impressed by the Suryanarayana and the Narasimha temples that are also found in the same complex. The exquisite sculptures in the temple are very admirable.

Two Groups of Temples

Brahmesvara and Papanatha are the 2 groups of temples on either side of Alampur. In 7th century AD Badami Chalukyas built these temples. The temples are not exactly in the Dravidian style but in Nagara style of architecture. The shikharas of all these temples have a curvilinear form and are adorned with the miniature architectural devices. The plans and decoration similar to that of the rock cut temples (found in Karnataka and Maharastra).

Geography

Demographics

According to The Imperial Gazetteer of India,[7] Alampur was a taluk of Raichur district, Hyderabad State. It has an area of 184 square miles (480 km2) in 43 villages. The population in 1901 was 30,222, compared with the 27,271 in 1891. Alampur, the headquarters, had a population of 4,182. Krishna river separates the taluk from Mahbubnagar district on the North and the Tungabhadra from Madras state. The confluence of these two rivers is situated in the extreme east of the taluk.

As of 2001[update] India census,[8] Alampur had a population of 9350. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Alampur has an average literacy rate of 61%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 64% of the males and 36% of females literate. 16% of the population is under 6 years of age.